20% of Mexicans at risk of COPD

• April 27, 2024

In the world, there are 210 million people who suffer from it. It is the sixth cause of mortality at the planetary level and, according to the World Health Organization (WHO ), it is reversible if the patient is diagnosed and receives medical attention in time, especially when the first symptoms of cough and excessive fatigue occur. It is chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD ) and, in our country, more than 16 million Mexicans are at risk of suffering from it because they are active smokers.

According to the doctor Eliseo Espinosa Poblano , chief of the Pneumology Service of the Cardiology Hospital of the National Medical Center (CMN) Siglo XXI, of the Mexican Institute of Social Security (IMSS), COPD involves two major diseases: chronic bronchitis Y pulmonary emphysema ; It also causes a decrease in the diameter of the bronchi and irreversible destruction of the lungs. Nine out of ten cases of this lung disease are caused by smoking , says the expert because it is known that: A person who has smoked at least ten years of his life, ten cigarettes or more a day, has up to 15 times more risk of developing COPD than those who do not smoke.

Problematic

One of the main problems of people with the disease, is that they do not go to the doctor in the presence of symptom as cough with expectoration of phlegm abundant and thick, as well as low physical condition, which results in fatigue, and shortness of breath when performing some physical activity of medium intensity. If people with this condition do not go to the specialists early, warns the doctor, complications can put patients' lives at risk. Through studies of spirometry it is possible to determine the degree of obstruction of bronchi and classify the disease as mild, moderate, severe and very severe.

The diagnosis timely can allow a treatment adequate, based on bronchodilators, inhaled corticosteroids (to reduce inflammation of the airways), antibiotics (in case of infection) and lung transplantation (when necessary and in countries with these resources). When the patient has a very severe case of COPD, pulmonary rehabilitation is sought, oxygen and various types of medications are offered. However, the response is unfavorable when the disease is advanced. The specialist emphasized that no treatment is useful if the habit of smoke ; This situation is not simple and nowadays there are more than 50% people who smoked for the first time before 18 years of age.